Chapter 8
Ares was not in a good mood.
"Where is that weaseling, brat nephew of mine!" he snarled with irritation. He kicked over a table covered with strategy maps.
"Two days! It’s been two days!" He snatched a war mask off of the wall and sent it spinning across the room – it smashed into a marble column and shattered into splinters.
"She can’t have gotten too far! She can’t be that hard to find!" He snapped his arm out straight and a streak of lightning shot out from his hand. A statue evaporated into individual molecules with a thunderous explosion.
There was a movement, and Ares’ attention was drawn upward, to the ceiling. A piece of parchment, wafting on the currents of air, fluttered down to the floor at Ares’ feet.
"Strife," Ares shouted, "You sniveling coward!"
Growling, he bent over and snatched up the parchment. He read it.
Ares’ roar shook the entire palace and reverberated at the speed of sound for miles around, sending livestock fleeing in blind panic – and even seasoned warriors dived for cover, their faces blanched with fear.
The blaze of light that Ares vanished into would have rivaled the brilliance of the sun, had it been day.
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Iolaus stood up and added another log to the campfire – he poked at it, sending up a shower of sparks, until he was satisfied with its position. He then sat back down and continued his work repairing the laces on his boot.
Mystic nickered a warning.
Iolaus jumped to his feet, but it was only Hercules and Jessa.
Iolaus smiled as the two entered the firelight, arm-in-arm. "Well, it’s about time – you missed dinner."
The pair just smiled at one another. "We weren’t hungry," Hercules said, "For food anyway."
Jessa blushed and looked down.
Iolaus grinned. "Well, I saved some for you both anyway." He went to the fire and dug into the warm ashes near its edge with a stick, pulling forth a bundle of leaves. He unwrapped the leaves, exposing a generous mound of fish.
Hercules took it from his friend’s outstretched hands. "Thanks, Iolaus." He and Jessa took a seat side-by-side, on a log. Hercules picked some of the flaky fish up in his fingers and tried it. "Mmmm, it’s good," he remarked, "Here Jessa." He picked up some more, and placed it in Jessa’s open mouth. Jessa, taking his wrist in her hands, closed her mouth on his fingers and, looking deep into his eyes, slowly pulled his fingers from between her lips. Hercules’ pulse quickened.
Iolaus looked down, grinning, and shook his head.
"Mystic seems to like bathing as much as you do, Jessa," he said, "After I unsaddled him, he jumped right in and took a good long soak. When he was finished, I took the liberty of feeding him some of the grain you pack."
"Oh! Thank you, Iolaus!" Jessa turned to Mystic, "I’m sorry I neglected you!"
Mystic nickered. Jessa smiled.
She looked at Hercules. "He approves of you."
Hercules smiled. "I’m glad – I know how important he is to you." He looked at the stallion. "Thank you, Mystic."
The horse nickered his reply.
An ear-shattering detonation resonated off of the boulders surrounding their encampment and a blinding flash pierced the blackness of the moonless night.
"JESSA!" The name echoed in a tremendous, thundering wave of sound that rolled off into the distance.
Ares stood before the trio of travelers – legs apart, arms held straight and slightly out from his sides – palms forward, fingers spread wide. His hands glowed and crackled with the blue light of the barely restrained forces held there.
Ares’ eyes glowered savagely out from beneath lowered brows – his face was a horrifying mask of utter fury.
"JESSA!" he howled again.
"ARES!" Hercules challenged back. He and Iolaus thrust their bodies before Jessa, shielding her from the wrathful god.
Ares raised a hand and pointed a crackling, shaking finger at Jessa. "She’s mine!" he roared vehemently.
Hercules stepped forward – his face mirrored the terrifying expression of his half-brother. "NO! She is not!"
Iolaus made a hasty grab for Jessa as she swooned – her face white with shock. "You can’t have her you filthy bastard!" he roared at Ares.
"She’s already mine!" Ares bellowed. His pointing finger suddenly spat blue fire.
Hercules threw himself to one side – the streaking bolt of lightning sizzled past, barely missing him.
"NO!" shrieked Jessa. Iolaus was trying to carry her to safety, but she fought him.
The lightning erupted towards Hercules again… and again… and again. He was having trouble avoiding them – they were in too close of quarters amongst the outcropping of boulders. Each missed shot sent the shrapnel of exploding rocks spraying in all directions.
There was the bugling roar of a war stallion. Hooves flashed and Ares was sent flying to smash hard into a boulder. Hercules threw himself on the god. His fists smashed unmercifully into Ares’ face, over and over.
Ares backhanded Hercules brutally. The half-god’s head snapped back and he was thrown back, onto the fire, scattering it.
Ares ignored him and charged toward where Iolaus was struggling with Jessa.
"Get her out of here!" Hercules shouted urgently to Iolaus.
"I’m trying!" Iolaus shouted in frustration, "She won’t let me!" He had her tightly around the waist but Jessa was fighting him all the way.
Hercules pulled himself out of the fire and lunged for Ares. He slammed facedown onto the hard, rocky ground, but managed to snag one of Ares’ feet, tripping him. Ares fell, but he also had managed to snag a foot – Jessa’s.
He jerked her leg violently, pulling both Jessa and Iolaus down on himself. Immediately, he grabbed Jessa and tried to roll free of the tangled heap of bodies.
"No you don’t!" yelled Hercules. Grabbing one of the still-burning logs from the scattered fire, he smashed Ares over the head with it. Sparks exploded from the log on impact, spraying onto Ares’ face and into his eyes. He roared in pain.
Iolaus kicked Ares in the face and snatched Jessa from his grasp. He made a dash for Jessa’s black war stallion. "Mystic!" he cried, "Take her!" He threw Jessa onto the horse’s bare back. Mystic bugled and, jumping the fire and the two furiously wrestling brothers, sped away into the darkness.
Ares punched Hercules in the groin and backhanded him again. He was free. He scrambled to his feet and ran for the sound of the fleeing stallion.
"Jessa!"
Iolaus blind-sided him. They crashed to the ground. The furious god howled and went for the blonde man’s throat, choking him. Hercules threw himself on Ares’ back, trying to pry him off of his friend. When this didn’t work, he began punching the god in the kidneys. Ares grunted in pain, but would not relinquish his grip around Iolaus’ neck.
Iolaus’ face was turning purple.
"NO!" Jessa screamed. "Stop it now, all of you!" She had refused Mystic’s aid, leaping from his back at full gallop, and returning to the fray.
The man, half-god, and full-blooded god all continued struggling.
"Stop it – right now – or I’ll be the one to die here this night!"
"I mean it Ares!" She held the blade of her own knife to her throat.
Ares glared furiously, but he released his grip on Iolaus’ throat. Iolaus rolled over onto his side and breathed in great heaving breaths, gasping loudly and coughing. Hercules shoved Ares away and went to help his friend.
"Jessa put down the knife!" Who said it makes no difference – it could have been any one of them.
"No!" She was sobbing. "I won’t let you all kill each other over me!"
"Please Jessa – don’t do it!" Again, who said it matters not.
"What else can I do!"
"Ares!" Hercules shouted, "Why can’t you just let her go!"
"No, I’m sorry brother, " the god snarled, "But I’m afraid I just can’t do that – I won’t do that!"
"Why not!"
"Because I want her! She’s mine!" Ares snarled, "She belongs with me! She belongs to me!"
"Damn-it-all-to-Tartarus, Ares! Isn’t it enough that you’ve raped her once! Let her go!"
"Raped?" Ares’ eyes narrowed. "Is that what she told you? That I raped her?" He suddenly threw back his head and laughed. "Oh, no brother, I didn’t rape her – she was quite the willing partner – weren’t you Jessa, my dear."
"No!" she sobbed, "I didn’t know who he was!"
"Oh, maybe not the first time, my sweet, but even after you did know, you were still amenable, weren’t you? Perhaps even more so. Weren’t you my little pet?"
Hercules looked into Jessa’s weeping face. Her eyes closed. She turned her face away from him, head lowered.
Hercules’ face shattered. "Jessa…" His voice caught in his throat.
Ares took his chance. He lunged. Seizing Jessa, he twisted the knife from her hand. Now he held it to her throat.
He pierced Hercules with his dark, flashing eyes. "She’s quite the firecracker, isn’t she Hercules? Did you find that little spot – you know – the one on the inside of her right thigh? The one that sends her into wild, passionate moaning?"
Hercules roared and poised to lunge at him.
"Ah, ah, ah!" Ares warned, "We wouldn’t want to mess up this pretty, sweet little throat of hers with a nasty scar, now would we?"
"You won’t hurt her! You want her too much!"
Ares’ lip curled. "Don’t be so sure, brother – I’d rather kill her before I’d let you have her!"
"Ares!" Hercules cried out in frustrated anger.
Ares’ face locked onto an angry, dangerous expression. "Have no doubts, brother, she is mine. You’ve seen, by her own admission, that she is!" He looked at the sobbing woman. "Go ahead Jessa, deny to him that you want to be with me!"
Jessa only kept her face lowered, weeping.
Ares laughed smugly. "As I said, she – is – mine!"
He dropped the dagger and pulled Jessa’s body tightly against his. "Good-bye brother!" he gloated, "Better luck next time!"
"No!" Jessa cried, looking up, "Wait!"
She saw the look on Hercules’ face. Her own face shattered. She stretched her arms out.
"Hercules!" she screamed.
There was a flash.
She was gone.
"JESSA!" howled Hercules.
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